Three GOP incumbents draw primaries; Young is latest

Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) could be in line for another tough primary, and he's got company.

Sheldon Fisher, a communications executive who formely headed up Sprint's broadband wireless business, announced on his website Thursday that he will challenge the longtime incumbent for the Republican nomination this year.

Young is the third incumbent Republican since Tuesday's special election to learn he will have a primary challenger. He joins Reps. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio) and Jim Gerlach (R-Pa.) in that regard.

Schmidt will face Warren County Commissioner Mike Kilburn, while Gerlach will face businessman Steven Welch, who said Thursday he would stay in the race after Gerlach switched from running for governor to running for reelection.

Fisher hasn't run for office, but he could bring personal funds to the race. Forbes estimates he made more than $1 million in 2008 as a senior vice president at Alaska Communications Systems Group. He recently resigned that position, according to the AP.

He is in his mid-40s and has a law degree from Yale University.

Young defeated then-Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell (R) by about 300 votes in his 2008 primary. Parnell has since ascended to governor, following Sarah Palin's resignation.

While it might be tempting to ascribe the primaries to Brown's win, the Young and Schmidt primaries are no surprise. And Gerlach likely wouldn't have a primary had he not decided to wage a bid for governor.